Device for big fish baiting

ABSTRACT

It is provided a device for big fish baiting, comprising means ( 1 ) for feeding baits; means ( 2 ) for supporting said feeding means and fastening them to a craft; means ( 10 ) for conveying said baits from the feeding means ( 1 ) into a water environment, wherein said conveying means are intended to create in said water environment an appeal wake for big fishes into the proximity of the craft sailing said water environment.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a device for fish baiting intended foramateurish fishing of big fishes, such as tuna, shark, etc.

BACKGROUND ART

In the prior art, amateurish fishing of big fishes uses:

either a cage fixed by means of a cable to a craft and containing somelittle fishes, such as cephalopods or sardines, as baits for big ones,

or little fishes which are thrown by hand from the craft, so as tocreate, while the craft advances, a wake appealing to big fishes.

Furthermore, in FR-A-1 250 389 it is disclosed a device for measuringout and distributing doses of a bait mixture, comprising vertical chutemeans for feeding, under the effect of gravity, means for conveying suchdoses which consist of endless conveying means continuously driven byappropriate drive means and running firstly upwardly inside the feedchute means along the vertical axis and from a horizontal outlet thereofand then, outside the feed chute means, horizontally and finallyaccording to a sloped path; such endless conveying means are equippedwith cup(measuring) means closing the horizzontal outlet of the verticalfeed chute means and distributed therealong in such a way that there isalways a cup means closing this outlet while the endless conveying meansare driven by the drive means.

U.S. Pat. No. 3,249,257 discloses a bait chummer comprising firstvertical chute means for feeding reciprocating means entended to chopbait material, while pushing the chopped bait material transverse ahorizontal outlet of the first vertical feed chute means, and secondvertical chute means intended to receive the chopped bait material fromthe chummer so as to direct it into the water.

The big fishes which are so baited in the proximity of the craft, arethen caught by means of a fishing rod carrying its own bait fixed to itshook.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The present invention seeks to provide an improvement for such anamateurish fishing.

According to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided adevice for big fish baiting as specified in claim 1.

An advantage which may be obtainable with the present invention is thecreation of a wake appealing to big fishes which, while being effective,avoids manipulation of the baits.

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is described below, byway of example only, with reference to the following figures:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a preferred embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, accordingto the longitudinal axis of the oblong container shown therein;

FIG. 3 is a developped view of the conveyor band shown in FIG. 1 andFIG. 2 and eqipped with gripping means;

FIGS. 4a and b are respectively a front and a side view showing indetail the gripping means of the conveyor band shown in FIG. 1 to FIG. 3

FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 are respectively a back and a front view of theembodiment shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 shows one of two identical side wings by means of which thedriving means are connected to the container;

FIG. 8 shows the embodiment of FIG. 1 equipped with a protection casingmade from a transparent plastic material.

FIG. 1 and FIG. 2 show an oblong container 1 sloped with respect tofastening means 2 consisting of an approximately V-shaped stirrup which,while supporting the container, allows fixation thereof, by means of ascrew-nut tightening 3, to a craft (not shown) sailing the sea, orgenerally a water environment (not shown).

The container 1, which resembles a mini-toboggan, has an upstream endclosed with a wall 4 and a downstream opened end 5 as well aslongitudinal walls 6 and 7 connecting these upstream and downstreamends.

When the container 1 is filled with baits 8, such as cephalopods orsardines (see FIG. 2), these latter slide, under the effect of gravity,along the bottom 9 towards the downstream opened end 5, thus feedingmeans—which will be disclosed in detail hereinafter—intended to conveythem towards the sea, so as to create therein an appeal wake for bigfishes, such as tuna or shark.

While reducing into practice the present invention it has been apparentthat the most effective manner to convey the baits without wasting is tohave conveying means able to remove the baits one by one from thefeeding container 1 by means of appropriate gripping means fixed to theconveying band 10.

To that effect, the downstream opened end 5 of the container 1 is closedby an upwardly oriented conveying band 10 envelopping two rolls 11 and12.

The roll 11 is driven by an electric motor 13, supplied by the batteryof the craft: see also FIG. 5 and FIG. 6 where are shown the motor shaft14 and the axis 15 of the driven roll 11.

In order to convey the baits 8 one by one from the feeding container 1,the conveying band 10 is provided with gripping means consisting of hookneedles 16 fixed thereon and uniformly spaced longitudinally as well astransversally.

FIG. 1 shows four hook needles fixed on the band, whereas FIG. 6 showsfive of such hook needles.

FIG. 3 shows five hook needles 16 on the developped band 10 and it ispossible to appreciate the regular longitudinal and transversal spacingbetween the hook needles: these spacings while being generally differentthere between are equal in the same direction. It is also possible toappreciate that this regular double spacing concerns the extreme hookneedles too when the transversal edges of the band 10 are joined end byend.

In FIG. 4 it is shown the preferred shape of the hook needles 16,supported by a nylon base 17 for fixation to the band 10.

The band 10 is mounted on the rolls 11 and 12, so as to have the hookneedles 16 upwardly oriented on the feeding means side and downwardlyoriented on the water environment side (see FIG. 2).

Of course, the edge of the downstream opened end of the bottom containerhas a number of notches 18 equal to the number of hook needles 16,allowing these latter to pass therethrough when the conveying band 10 isdriven by the driving means. Such notches 18 allow also liquids (seawater or liquids produced by the very same baits) to flow therethrough.

From FIG. 5, FIG. 6 and FIG. 7 it is clear for a person skilled in theart how to mount the different components of the device provided by thepresent invention.

Anyway, hereinafter it is briefly disclosed how to carry out theassembly. The rolls 11 and 12 are supported by two lateral identicalwings 19. FIG. 7 shows the holes arranged on each wing so as to rendereffective the assembly.

The holes 20 at the periphery of the wings allow the fixation to thelongitudinal walls 6 and 7 of the container 1.

The holes 21 allow the assembly of the two spacing axis 22 and 23 shownby dotted lines in FIG. 6.

The holes 24 allow the assembly of support means 25 and 26 (see FIG. 6)consisting of a muff and a bolt respectively aiming at stabilizing theassembly of the box 27 containing the motor 13 and the circuitry.

Even if a unique hole of the type 24 is sufficient, both wings 19 areprovided with such a hole so as to allow the assembly of the box 27 onthe left or right side of the container, according to the mountingpossibilities on the craft.

The hole 26 allow the assembly of the axis 15 of the roll 11 intended tobe driven by the motor shaft 14.

The holes 29 allow the assembly of the axis of the roll 12. These holesare oblong so as to have the possibility to regulate the tension of theband 10. To that effect a spring 31 is mounted on a bolt 32perpendicular to each end of the axis of the roll 12, this spring beingintended to be compressed between each one of these latter ends and aring 33 fixed to each wing 19 through the holes 30: it is clear that theright adjustment of the band tension is obtained by sliding the bolts 32in the rings 33, due to the oblong character of the holes 29, and thenby tightening in the appropriate position the axis of the roll 12.

Preferably, the container is made from vitro-resin, resistant to seewater and easily washable, but it could be made from stainless steel.

The band 10 is made of plastic material.

Hereinafter there is disclosed the operation of the device provided bythe present invention.

The motor 13 takes off roll 11 into rotation. Together with the roll 12,the roll 11 takes off the conveying band 10 provided with the hookneedles 16, which, by passing upwardly through the notches 18 of thecontainer bottom 9, hook one after the other, among the baits 8 feededby the feeding means 1, that bait which is intercepted by one of thehook needles. After reaching the top of the conveying band 10 each bait8 follows a downward path, so that under the effect of its own weight itleaves the corresponding hook needle falling into the water.

At the beginning of the downward path, each bait 8 intercepts the beam34 emitted by an infrared—ray photo—switch 35. When the nature of thebaits 8 (such as sardines) allows the reflection of the beam 34 thereon,this reflection switches the motor 13 off, thus stopping the conveyingband 10. This kind of operation corresponds to FIGS. 1 and 6.

When the nature or status of baits 8 (such as cephalopods or sardineswith a few or without scales) is improper for beam reflection, theoperation of the switch 35 is based on the reflection of the beam on acatadioptrical reflector 36 (see FIG. 8), in the sense that the absenceof a reflected beam, corresponding to the interception of a bait 8,switches the motor 13 off.

This kind of operation is illustrated in FIG. 8.

In each case, after interception of the switch beam by a bait, a timer(not shown, intended to be put inside the box 27 containing the motor 13and circuitry) allows to regulate the time interval after which themotor 13 can operate again, so as to initiate a new cycle for ejecting anew bait. The time interval (in seconds) of the timer can be preselectedby means of a potentiometer 37 (see FIG. 6).

This time interval is chosen in function of the sailing speed as well asthe speed of the sea current.

Sometimes, especially at the beginning of the creation of an appealwake, it is desirable to create an appeal wake having a greater lineardensity of baits in the water (for linear density it is meant the numberof baits for unit length of the appeal wake.

In this case, it is appropiate to put the switch 35 in the off position,so as to let the driving means 13 run continuously during a given time,thus raising the baiting probability.

A further increasing of the baiting probability can be obtained by meansof a triturator 38 supplied by means of an inlet (see FIGS. 1, 2, 5 and8). It is fixed to the box 27 by means of a dovetail joint 39 allowingthe transversal sliding of the triturator in order to intercept at leastone trajectory (at the most two trajectories) of the baits 8 taken offdownwardly by a corresponding hook needle 16.

In such a manner, it is possible to create in the water a supplementalappeal wake due to continuous diffusion of a smell spread along saidappeal wake by the triturated baits.

Of course, it is useful to construct the triturator from stainlesssteel.

In order to protect the user from damage due to the presence of the hookneedles on the conveying band, it is useful to provide the device shownin FIG. 1 with a protection casing 40. This latter is illustrated inFIG. 8, which differs from FIG. 1 essentially to show the possibility ofusing five hook needles 16 (instead of the four ones shown in FIG. 1)and of using a catadioptrical reflector 36.

It can be appreciated from FIG. 8 that the protection casing 40 is madefrom a transparent material, such as plexiglass, so as to let the switch35 operate while allowing visual control of the device operation.

The transparent protection casing 40 comprises a top portion 41envelopping the top portion of the conveying band 10, a low portion 42protecting from the inferior part of the band and a bottom portion 43orienting the baits falling towards the water.

Of course, the top portion is opened downwardly, as shown by arrow 44,to let the falling of the baits partly in the triturator 38 and partlyin the water.

The transversal wall 45 connecting the lateral walls of the protectioncasing 40 is provided with notches 46 corresponding to the notches 18arranged on the edge of the container bottom.

Furthermore, the slope of the feeding container 1 can be adjusted byarranging for example at the top of the two branches 2 a and 2 b of thefastening means 2(see FIGS. 1, 2 and 5) several holes 2 c (see FIG. 2):by choosing one pair of such opposing holes 2 c, before tightening thebranches 2 a and 2 b to the side walls 6 and 7 of the feeding container,it is possible to adjust the slope thereof.

What is claimed is:
 1. A device for big fish baiting, comprising: a feedchute adapted for receiving baits, said feed chute having walls and adownstream end; means for fastening the feed chute to a water craftintended to sail a water environment, with the walls of the feed chutesloped to direct baits present in the feed chute toward the downstreamend; an endless conveyor positioned at the downstream end of the feedchute in a generally vertical orientation and defining an upwardlymoving run facing the feed chute and a downwardly moving return run onthe opposite side thereof; a drive for moving the endless conveyor; andhook needles fixed on the endless conveyor and spaced longitudinally andtransversely from one another, the hook needles being operable forgripping baits as the conveyor is moved upwardly and for removing thebaits one by one from the feed chute and for discharging the baits intothe water environment so as to create therein a wake appealing to bigfishes in the proximity of the water craft.
 2. The device as claimed inclaim 1, wherein the hook needles are upwardly oriented on said upwardlymoving run of the conveyor belt and are downwardly oriented on saidreturn run, and wherein said feed chute has a number of notches formedtherein and arranged to allow the hook needles pass therethrough whenthe conveyor belt is driven by said drive.
 3. The device as claimed inclaim 1 including a switch mounted adjacent to said conveyor andarranged to sense the movement of a bait gripped on the conveyor, and atimer connected to the switch and to the drive and operable for stoppingoperation of the drive for a period of time following sensing of a baitby said switch.
 4. The device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the switchis an optical switch which is responsive to the reflection of a grippedbait.
 5. The device as claimed in claim 3, wherein the switch is anoptical switch, and a reflector is mounted cooperating with the switch,the switch being responsive to interruption of an optical beam betweenthe switch and the reflector by a gripped bait.
 6. The device as claimedin claim 1, wherein said drive is operated continuously so as to createa wake in the water with a larger linear density of baits.
 7. The deviceas claimed in claim 1, including a triturator mounted to intercept atrajectory of at least one bait removed from the feed hopper by theconveyor so as to receive and triturate periodically at least one baitand create in the water a supplemental wake from the triturated bait. 8.The device as claimed in claim 1, including a protective casingcooperating with the endless conveyor.
 9. A device for big fish baiting,comprising: a feed chute adapted for receiving baits, said feed chutehaving walls and an open downstream end; means for fastening the feedchute to a water craft, with the walls of the feed chute sloped todirect baits present in the feed chute toward the downstream end; anendless conveyor belt positioned at the downstream end of the feed chuteobstructing the open end thereof, the endless conveyor belt extending ina generally vertical orientation; a drive for moving the endlessconveyor belt so that the surface of the conveyor belt facing the feedchute is moved upwardly; and a series of hook needles fixed on saidconveyor belt and spaced longitudinally and transversely from oneanother and arranged for gripping baits as the conveyor belt is movedupwardly and for removing the baits one by one from the feed chute. 10.The device as claimed in claim 9, wherein the hook needles are upwardlyoriented on the side of the conveyor belt facing the feed chute and aredownwardly oriented on the opposite side, and wherein said feed chutehas a number of notches formed therein and arranged to allow the hookneedles pass therethrough when the conveyor belt is driven by saiddrive.
 11. The device as claimed in claim 9, including a trituratormounted to intercept a trajectory of at least one bait removed from thefeed hopper by the conveyor belt so as to receive and triturateperiodically at least one bait and create in the water a supplementalwake from the triturated bait.